


the warmth of a first glance

by hanzios



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Alternate Universe, First Meetings, M/M, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-25
Updated: 2020-07-25
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:20:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25511233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hanzios/pseuds/hanzios
Summary: Months after quitting his job at the DA's office, Rafael Barba has been arrested during a peaceful protest. Luckily, his friend Rita sent him the perfect lawyer to defend his case.
Relationships: Rafael Barba/Dominick "Sonny" Carisi Jr.
Comments: 14
Kudos: 52
Collections: Barisi Summer Exchange 2020





	the warmth of a first glance

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mforpaul](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mforpaul/gifts).



> warning: my knowledge of united states law is purely based on svu & a little bit of google search. i apologize if there are any mistakes in the logistics of this fic.

This is not how imagined his day would go – sitting in a cold, stuffy interrogation room, clad in the brightest colors known to man. The entire situation felt like a messed up caricature, and for a full minute he was wondering if he was trapped in an editorial cartoon.

Rafael pulled up the sleeve of his rainbow sweater to check his watch. Despite the blue glitter clumped together near the number 9, he could still read and concur that he’d been stuck in the room for almost an hour now.

If it were him, he’d talk his way out of the ridiculous charges the police are pinning on him. He _was_ (yep, past tense) a lawyer, after all. Better use that Harvard degree for something, right? But after a quick call with Rita on the station’s phone, she advised him to stay put and shut his mouth. As if he didn’t know that already.

Sgt. Boone – the red-faced man’s nameplate said – had already tried to interrogating him twice, but Rafael successfully scared him off. _Jesus, don’t Staten Island cops know the goddamn law?_

To pass the time, he walked through the night’s event in his head.

Fact 1: Rafael was at 10th Avenue with some of the members of a local queer NGO. They’d staged a protest to boycott a certain restaurant after they’d fired one of their gay employees for unknown reasons.

Fact 2: After quitting the DA’s office seven months ago, Rafael decided to spend his time volunteering to things that mattered to him. To be honest, he was only supposed to stand by and act as legal support at the protest, in case anything serious went down.

Fact 3: Something did _… go down_. And Rafael _may_ have been at the forefront of the mayhem.

It was around after thirty minutes of the rally when the owners had called the cops as if it was still the 1980’s and they were a hoarde of scary gays. (Fact 4: Police cars arrive two times faster than ambulances in the city. That’s fun to know.)

In the heat of the moment, amidst the rainbow everything, and the blaring red and blue lights, Rafael distinctly recalled some of his friends yelling at the cops that were growing impatient by the second. Next thing he knew, he was being forced into a squad car despite him repeating over and over again his and his group’s rights as peaceful protesters.

Now, he’s here. In a small room with mold on one corner near the door. They probably have the others on a holding cell. _I cannot_ wait _to sue the shit out of–_

“I’m sorry for the delay, Mr. Barba,” a man dressed in a suit that didn’t fit him suddenly burst into the room, accent as thick as that big Boone fellow. “Traffic was a nightmare.”

Rafael rose his brow and crossed his arms. “Excuse me, who are you?”

The tall, gray-haired man smiled at him, dimples and all, and held out his hand. “I’m Sonny Carisi. I work with Rita Calhoun?” _Sonny? What adult man calls himself_ Sonny _?_

Now Rafael was even _more_ confused. “Quick question, have you even graduated law school yet?”

Surprisingly, Carisi didn’t seem to be fazed by the sarcasm at all. He dropped his lonely hand and sat on the chair in front of Rafael, setting his briefcase on the table between them. “Yes, Fordham Law. Three years ago. Passed the Bar on the first try.”

“Ah,” Rafael said, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. “Congratulations.” Before the dimpled man could say anything more with that ridiculous accent, Rafael asked, “Mr. Carisi, _where_ is Rita?”

“She has a client who called for an emergency in Manhattan,” Carisi explained. “I was done at the firm for the day, so I volunteered to represent you on her behalf.”

Rafael finally did roll his eyes. “Great. Just great.”

There was a moment of silence that passed between the both of them. And when Rafael turned to look over to the blue-eyed lawyer in front of him, the man was just staring intently at him, a small quirk on the corner of his mouth.

“What?”

“Nothing. I just thought the ‘sassy lawyer’ character was something you put on only when you’re in court. Turns out it’s just you.”

“ _Excuse me?_ ”

“I’ve, uh…” Carisi averted his gaze for a quick second before turning back to him. “I’ve been to your trials before. You know, when you were an ADA in Manhattan. It was exciting, watching you send criminals to jail.”

Rafael uncrossed his arms and straightened his back. “So, you became a defense attorney because…?”

Carisi smiled – _Jesus, does this kid_ not _smile?_ (And shit, why is Rafael kind of into it now?) “You know what Rita told me before I drove down here?”

“Never meet your heroes?”

With that, Carisi beamed. “Exactly, Mr. Barba.” Without missing a beat, he added, “Now let’s discuss your case, shall we?”

Unexpectedly, Carisi was a pretty competent lawyer. He asked just the right questions and offered good legal advice. No wonder Rita sent him over instead of some other subpar associate who Rafael had to spoon-feed. Carisi was quick-witted and sharp, which was very much appreciated. Also, despite trying not to think about it, during their _very_ serious, _very_ professional conversation, Rafael can’t help but take notice upon Carisi’s face. He had bright ocean eyes and a pair of full pink lips, and briefly, Rafael wondered if Carisi swung his way.

Hmm. He might just have to deal with the elephant in the closet when he’s not in a police station and on the verge of being arrested.

After a good thirty minutes, Sgt. Boone and a lanky policeman who looked like he just graduated from high school came inside the room. Carisi was now on the seat beside Rafael as the two cops tried to intimidate them from the other side of the table.

“Look, Sgt. Boone,” Carisi started. “Here are the facts, alright? My client and his colleagues were exercising their First Amendment Rights when the cops were called and wrongfully dragged them into the police station. You detained them here for more than an hour without a reason for arrest. It seems to me like this is a lawsuit waiting to happen, don’t you?”

“We were doing our jobs,” Sgt. Boone responded, unwavered by Carisi’s threat. “Besides, Mr. Barba here…” – he waved his hand to Rafael’s direction – “…was resisting arrest.”

“I was _explaining_ to you my _rights, Officer,_ because _clearly –“_

Carisi placed a warm hand on Rafael’s shoulder, and that immediately made him stop in his tracks. “What my client here is saying is that you never told him – or any of them, for that matter – _why_ you were taking them to the precinct in the first place. Were you taught the Miranda Rights in the Police Academy… sergeant?”

For a second there, Sgt. Boone looked like he was about to pounce on Carisi when the other cop whose name Rafael couldn’t be bothered to learn stopped him and whispered something in his ear. During this, Rafael and Carisi shared a look. Hell, Rafael _maybe_ even shot the young attorney a small smile, which he returned.

“Here’s what’s gonna happen, officers,” Carisi spoke up again, voice authoritative. “You will let these people go without any charges, and although I am _very much_ tempted to write you up for the trauma you’ve caused my client, I’ll do you a favour and _not_ do that.”

The two cops shared a look before they stood up on their seats. Sgt. Boone looked to Rafael and said with gritted teeth, “You’re free to go. We will release the others immediately.”

The both of them went to leave the room, and as they disappeared out the door, Carisi stood up and called, “I’ll see you both soon!” With a grin on his mouth, he turned to Rafael.

The older man rose to his feet. “Hmm. You might make for a decent lawyer after all.”

“A compliment? From Rafael Barba? I must be dreaming.”

Rafael smirked. The both of them went out and made sure all of the other protesters were being released. Rafael personally counted the members of their organization as the officers opened the holding cell gate. With about 13 queer folk dressed in rainbow colors surrounding him, Rafael easily lost track of the tall, young attorney who helped them be freed. He craned his neck for any sign of grey hair, but, to his dismay, he didn’t find the guy he was looking for.

All of them finally stepped outside the precinct and into the cold air. Rafael, despite never liking a cliché, breathed in the sweet smell of freedom.

“Mr. Barba?”

His mind immediately blanked and he turned around. Carisi had been waiting outside the police station, wearing a coat that was also _ridiculously_ larger than him. _God,_ all Rafael wanted to do at that moment was buy the man some fitting clothes.

But he set that thought aside and instead, held out his hand. “Thank you, Mr. Carisi. Your services were appreciated.”

Enthusiastically, Carisi shook his hand. Warm. “Just doing my job.”

“Do you have any other clients in need of saving tonight?”

The man shook his head, shoving his hands into his coat pockets. “No, not really.”

The rush of the day was coursing through Rafael’s veins and he was suddenly feeling brave. “How’d you like to have a drink with me? To celebrate not going to prison.”

Carisi smiled at that, the dimples on his red cheeks deepening. “I’d like that, Mr. Barba.”

“You know what? Call me Rafael.”

There was a pause. And for a moment, Rafael had thought he’d said the wrong thing. But that stupid smile never fell from Carisi’s face, and all his worries melted away.

“Well, then, nice to meet you, Rafael. My name’s Sonny.”

**Author's Note:**

> this is my first time participating in a fic challenge for a fandom and it was so much fun! i hope u enjoyed reading this <3


End file.
